In March 2020 while mankind faced one of the greatest tests that mother nature has ever unleashed upon this species, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson launched his tequila brand, Teremana. DJ, as The Rock is affectionately known in his close circle, had tasted over 130 variations of this tequila before arriving at perfection. He was unfortunately not present at the Teremana launch held at Truffles on the Park in Sandton.
It would have been enlightening to gauge his mind about how a man born in California to a Samoan descent mother and a Canadaian father, perfected a Mexican spirit. Made with the blue weber agave plant, which takes nearly 10 years to mature.
There are more than 200 species of the agave grown in Mexico, but the blue weber is the species that produces tequila.
However, Teremana’s international vice president Gonzalo Faria (spelt Gonçalo Faria) who lived in Mzansi from August 2012 to July 2016 was more than happy to personally deliver the news of the brand’s SA launch to his former home.
Tequila is usually cooked in small quantities to preserve the quality through the double distillation. Tequila makers are called jimadores, and they are skilled harvesters who navigate long and spiky leaves to unearth the heart of the agave plant known as the piña.
“Teremana is unique because it’s not manufactured using massive commercial facilities, but its own exclusive equipment and manufacturing floor at the Jalisco Highlands, using its own tailor-made yeast,” Faria explained.
The vice president revealed to guests that since its launch in the USA six years ago, Teremana became the fastest growing spirit in history. Scenic Storyteller initially suspected that the man was speaking from bias born of brand loyalty, however his claims are substantiated by an article that was published by Forbes in March this year declaring the brand a “$3.5B spirits empire.”
“Teremana sold 300,000 nine-litre cases, the biggest spirits launch in history. More than 1 million cases were sold annually until 2023,” the article reads.
Proceedings at the SA launch were led by the cofounder of the European Bartender School in Cape Town, Cassandra Eichhoff.
A tequila connoisseur in her own right, Eichhoff shared with guests that her first visit to tequila’s native country of Mexico was two years ago when she represented Mzansi at the Patrón Perfectionists Cocktail Competition. The competition is among the most prestigious global mixology tournaments on a global scale.
Since launching in this country on 12 May, Rock’s tequila brand can be purchased from Makro, Tops at Spar and online.